~ I promise I was not trying to make so many people emotional yesterday. Here is an apology chapter and Part Two to "Just Talk", and I promise it has a happy ending. Oh almost forgot, spoiler warning for seasons 6 and 7. xoxo ~
"You get anywhere with Doyle?" you ask Morgan as he, JJ, and Rossi walk into the roundtable room.
"Doyle doesn't think Gerace has the guts to take him on," he replies.
"But that's definitely Gerace on the tape," Garcia says as she looks between all of you in confusion.
"Welcome back," Morgan says as Hotch finally walks into the room. He has a serious look on his face, but that's just how his face is. You can't remember the last time you saw him smile while at work.
"Thanks," he says quickly as he glances at Morgan, "Everybody have a seat."
You all look at each other apprehensively, well everybody except for Hotch and JJ. What you thought was just going to be Hotch giving you all some important information about the case, has now turned into something deeper, and your stomach churns in anxiousness.
"Why?" Morgan asks as he pulls out his chair to sit in, "What's going on? Everything all right?"
"Seven months ago, I made a decision that affected this team," Hotch starts to say, with JJ standing up next to him. Unlike the big man, JJ seems to be nervous, which doesn't do anything to calm your nerves.
"As we all know," he continues, "Emily had lost a lot of blood after her fight with Doyle." At the sound of her name, your head, which had been angled down as you fiddled with your hands, snaps up to look at Hotch. "But we were able to stabilize her."
A cold shiver runs down your spine. What? If they were able to stabilize her then why did they lie? You look around that table and see that practically everybody is having the same reaction that you are.
"She was airlifted from Boston to Bethesda under a covert exfiltration. Her identity was strictly need-to-know, and she stayed there until she was well enough to travel. She was reassigned to Paris where she was given several secret identities, none of which we had access to for security."
"She is alive," you hear Garcia say, and you don't even have to look at her, to know that tears are starting to fill her eyes.
No, you think to yourself. There is no possible way that she could still be alive. We had a funeral, we grieved, we all had to go to mandatory counseling. What is Hotch talking about?
Just then Reid voices the same things that you had just been thinking
"But we buried her," he says in disbelief.
"As I said," Hotch says as he looks around at the confused and betrayed looks on all of your faces. "I take full responsibility for the decision. If anyone has issues, they should be directed toward me." You hear Morgan scoff at his words.
"Issues? Yeah, I got issues." Morgan looks pissed, and it seems as though he is going to blow his top and start an argument when you hear Garcia mumble something from next to you.
"Oh, my God." you glance over at her and see her eyes are locked on something behind you. You whip your head around and every functioning part of your brain feels like it is short-circuiting. Standing in front of all of you is Emily.
"I am so sorry." Those are the first words that she says, as she takes a cautious step inside the room. She barely gets inside, before Garcia is out of her seat and wrapping her arms around her in a hug.
